1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to devices for deflecting rain, sunlight, snow, and glare from the windshield of a vehicle and, more particularly, to an aerodynamic deflector apparatus adapted to be mounted to a vehicle and including a shield movably supported above the windshield and a portion of the roof of the vehicle.
2. Description of the Related Art
The problem of reduced visibility when driving a vehicle is well known and may be attributable to many factors including direct sunlight in the driver's eyes, rain splattering on the windshield, snow and glare from sunlight shining off objects such as the dashboard. Furthermore, in colder climates, snow and ice frequently accumulate on the vehicle's windows while at rest, requiring the windows to be scraped clear before driving.
Virtually all vehicles are equipped with windshield wipers to remove rain water and snow from the windshield when occupants are in the vehicle. However, conventional wipers only remove rain from the windshield, after the rain has struck the windshield, resulting in periodic impairment of visibility between each stroke of the wipers. In heavy rain conditions, the driver's visibility is almost totally obscured, even with the use of wipers, requiring many drivers to pull the vehicle off to the side of the road until the rain subsides. In fact, a large number of vehicle accidents are the result of reduced visibility in heavy rain conditions, even with the use of modern day windshield wiper systems.
Most vehicles are further provided with sun visors within the vehicle interior which are adapted to be flipped down by the driver or passengers to shield direct sunlight from the eyes. However, sun visors, to be effective, must extend substantially downward from the top edge of the windshield to block sunlight when the sun is low in the sky. And, while conventional sun visors of this type are somewhat effective in shielding sunlight from the eyes of the vehicle driver and passengers, they substantially reduce the driver's line of sight, thus, reducing visibility. To address this problem, some vehicles are equipped with exterior sun visors which protrude from the vehicle roof forwardly of the windshield. Exterior sun visors are, to some extent, effective in shading the vehicle interior and reducing glare from the sun's rays. However, exterior sun visors are generally not sufficient to block rain and snow from the windshield, especially during movement of the vehicle. Further, these structures are fixedly mounted on the vehicle exterior, interfering with airflow over the windshield and roof of the vehicle, and thus inducing drag which results in substantially reduced fuel efficiency. Furthermore, exterior visors reduce the forward visibility of the driver, resulting in a "driving through a tunnel" sensation.
Over the years, there have been numerous devices proposed to address the problem of reduced visibility to the driver of a vehicle resulting from rain and sunlight. Examples of such devices are disclosed in the Hwang U.S. Pat. No. 5,186,511; Chen, No. 4,950,020; Newman, No. 4,229,035; Francis, No. 3,481,644; Huber, No. 3,957,301; and Kamp, No. 3,152,832. The various devices set forth in these patents are intended to serve as an external windshield sun shade or weather shield for automobiles, most being specifically structured for one purpose, either shading the vehicle interior or blocking rain from the windshield. All of the devices disclosed in these patents reduce the field of view and fail to provide an aerodynamic structure specifically adapted to minimize drag on a moving vehicle.
Accordingly, there is still a need in the automobile industry for an aerodynamic deflector apparatus which is specifically structured to provide multiple functions including blocking rain and snow from the windshield of a moving vehicle, shading sunlight and glare from the vehicle interior and occupant's eyes, preventing snow and ice from accumulating on the windshield (and optionally the rear window) while the vehicle is at rest and further providing a means for selectively inducing drag to the vehicle to supplement the conventional braking system.